On the 20th of September, I was invited to witness the official launch of Le Pont Boulangerie et Café. The cafe has officially opened its stately doors in Old Klang Road with a three-storey French European boulangerie-patisserie-café offering wholesome cafe cuisine, traditionally artisanal yet innovative breads and pastry, custom-roasted house blend coffee and specially-crafted drinks.

Official Launch Ceremony of Le Pont Boulangerie et Café

The inspiration behind the name Le Pont (French for ‘The Bridge’) comes from the desire to capture the vision of a unique space where people can come together and forge new friendships and the aspiration to create a food & beverage concept where food and drink connect seamlessly. Thus was born a French European boulangerie-patisserie-cafe that strives to connect cultures, link great food with memorable moments and showcase culinary expertise and gastronomic innovations.

This vision materialised in the modern French cuisine café menu, European inspired creations that grace the bread and pastry shelves and carefully-crafted coffee experiences. To solidify the vision, a space was designed where concrete co-exists with wood perfectly to invoke functionality and warmth. The result is a comfortable meeting point for work and play, family and individual, food and drink.

“Le Pont bridges the seemingly impossible, bringing together in a unique manner food, design and space. Artisanal craftsmanship meets contemporary cafe culture, giving rise to a space where relationships, connections and communication can blossom. This is infused into every aspect of Le Pont from the warm and intimate yet industrial modern design of the cafe to the gastronomic experiences afforded to patrons,” said Mr A K Tan, Executive Chairman of BUTBO Group.

Miss Serena C, as the emcee for the launch.

A nice gimmick at the launch by dropping the balloons carrying Le Pont's croissant from the rooftop.

The boxes were then received by three very important person from Le Pont – Muhammad Padzli, Head Pastry Chef, David Leong, Head of Coffee and Daniel Wong, Chef De Cuisine

The gastronomic experience of Le Pont is centred on the trio of pastries & breads, the cafe and speciality coffee. Each of these three central pillars embodies a distinct food philosophy and a commitment to its customers.

All the guest and VIPs having some of the croissant at the launch.

The Bread & Pastry

Le Pont Boulangerie et Café offers over 40 different varieties of breads and pastries, all made with a high degree of precision and exactness. From ensuring a consistent temperature of the ice water used to make pastry to using only top grade Valrhona chocolate in the mousse, the team of patissiers and bakers go the distance to delight the senses and tastebuds. Breads, pastries and cakes are made fresh with no preservatives or artificial agents. Signature offerings at the bakery are the chocolate caramel mousse, flourless chocolate cake, the Fougasse and vanilla cream doughnut.

The Cafe

In designing the cafe menu, Chef de Cuisine Daniel Wong called upon his many years of experience in creating fine dining experiences. The challenge lay in creating a menu with the right mix of family fare and comfort food, with the right touch of sophistication to reflect the French-European connection. The café features staples like soups, salads and sandwiches to more hearty yet traditionalist fare like lamb shank, with sparks of modern contemporary French like the mango salmon. And to keep things exciting, fun and fresh, Chef Daniel and his team create monthly theme-driven special menus, pushing the envelope a little each time. Signature offerings at the cafe are the mushroom soup served with Le Pont’s mushroom toast, Caesar salad, the Pissaladiere tart, the Le Pont Special Lamb Shank, Vegetarian Linguine, Anchovy Linguine, Tiramisu, Le Pont Signature Waffles and Profiterole with ice cream.

Speciality Coffee & Craft Drinks

Le Pont’s coffee aims to please the palate and inspire adventure. For the coffee drinkers looking for a reliable cuppa that never fails to satisfy, the Head of Coffee David Leong worked with roasters to create a unique house blend with a specific profile. Le Pont’s beans have a chocolatey sweet flavour, which gives the coffee a good body and excellent consistency. The 60-65 degree steamed milk completes the sublime experience. For coffee drinkers with a more refined palate looking for a coffee experience, David has introduced a free-pour and hand-brewed coffee experience. The signature craft beverages are the Hand Brew, Iced Long Black, Rose Latte, Piccolo Latte, Affogato and refreshing lemonade.

Muhammad Padzli, Head Pastry Chef demonstrating on how to make croissants.

Muhammad Padzli began his career in a hotel in Penang as a kitchen helper. Roped in to assist the pastry department during Christmas one year, he soon found himself moving up the ranks in the field of patisserie, a journey that would take him all over the world for the next 15 years, and into the kitchens of Joel Robuchon and Umberto Bombana. Chef Padzli overseas all the pastry, cakes and breads created in our kitchens and enforces rigorous standards of pastry and bread-making. In line with our food philosophy, Chef Padzli works with premium ingredients like Valrhona chocolate in his signature creations like chocolate caramel mousse and adheres to a strict rule of no artificial or preservative agents, not even baking soda, in Le Pont’s creations.

Guest and media (Tian Chad on the left) trying out the croissant making speed challenge.

Chef Padzli hopes to introduce Malaysians to two of his favourite pastries: the Paris-Brest and the Religieuse.

Daniel Wong, Chef De Cuisine. Photo by Le Pont Boulangerie et Café

Daniel Wong has over 10 years experience in the field of international fine dining. Having worked his way up from kitchen helper to sous chef at Joel Robuchon’s Singapore restaurant, he then moved to the Bombana Group in Hong Kong, where he headed the opening team for the Opera Bombana Beijing. Daniel is responsible for creating the menu at Le Pont and works with the entire team to ensure the flavours and gastronomic experience of the menu connect with the increasingly adventurous Malaysian palate whilst reflecting our commitment to high-quality ingredients and culinary craft. Daniel’s favourite dish on the Le Pont menu is the Le Pont Special Lamb Shank, and he looks forward to introducing Malaysians to duck rilette, served on Le Pont baked bread.

David Leong, Head of Coffee demonstrating hand brewed coffee.

David is a certified Authorised Trainer with the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE), as well as the Director and Lead Trainer with the Barista Guild Asia’s Coffee Academy. He also oversees the Public Relations for Malaysia Specialty Coffee Association. He has competed professionally and has been a judge in numerous national Barista competitions, evaluating the full spectrum of Barista technical skills, from coffee-making to sensory evaluation. David brings his considerable knowledge and expertise to the task of creating the coffee experience at Le Pont as well as the overall beverage selection on the menu. From designing the flavour behind the house blend used in all of Le Pont’s coffee creations to collaborating with Chef Padzli on the home-made vanilla ice cream used in Le Pont’s signature affogato, David’s task is to ensure every customer at Le Pont has the perfect beverage accompaniment to their meal or simply, the time spent at the cafe. David’s favourite drink on the Le Pont menu is the signature Iced Long Black, enjoyed with Chef Pazdli’s gianduja cake.

Here's some of the pretty pastries and cakes served at the event which I didn't have the time to try them out but nevertheless they looked super tempting and delicious!

There was a recent Facebook post regarding an issue of a group of customers bad experience at Le Pont Boulangerie et Café, so here's some clarifications which I have gotten from the PR agency.

1. Can we even take picture on the premise? Are there any restriction? As in no DSLR, compact cam or smartphone?
Sure, everyone is allowed to take pictures in the premises, whether you are a dine-in customer, purchasing items from the bakery or even a curious onlooker. There are no restrictions to the devices you can use. Of course those bringing in large equipment like a TV film crew or wedding photoshoot should obtain prior permission first, as the cafe would not want their dining customers to be disturbed by the bulky equipment or furniture that may need to be shifted.

2. If I were to buy the pastry from the ground floor, can I take them up to dine at 1st or 2nd floor? Vice versa?
Yes, Le Pont allows customers to buy pastry from the Ground floor and consume it on the 1st and 2nd floor, However, the patrons are required to pay for the bakery items at the Ground floor before bringing them up. Le Pont does not serve dine-in food at Ground floor (this is clearly stated on the signage next to the entrance and lift poster), mainly because the dining tables are located on the upper floors and the kitchens are also located upstairs.

So if you still having these problems at Le Pont, just quote my blog post and don't forget to LIKE my Facebook page @ www.facebook.com/CleverMunkey (hahaha...). The interior of the cafe is really nice and I didn't really get to try their food and pastries other than the croissant. Hopefully I will get to visit Le Pont Boulangerie et Café again in the near future.